Shockwave
by Kaleidoscope dreamer
Summary: Someone has hijacked an Agent of SHIELD and it's up to Skye to figure it out before time runs out: for both of them. I don't own the show, but I hope you enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Skye ran. Her hart beating wildly in her chest, her boots pounded down the silent streets. The dark gray sky had not been touched by the rising sun as shadows danced across the pavement. Taking a quick look behind confirmed that she was still being followed.

He moved silently, quick and light like a tiger stalking his prey. With graceful movements, he swiftly moved between buildings. Skye's footsteps were echoed by his following close behind.

"Tell me what's happening Skye!" Simmons shouted through her ear piece, "We need to be able to locate him!"

"Let me try to handle this!" Skye growled back. She turned a corner and pressed herself against the long shadows of a building. Blood rushed through her ears from adrenaline and exhaustion. Forcing herself to take a deep breath, she closed her eyes and listened. His steps slowed as he turned down the street where she was hidden. Her voice cought in her throat when she heard his voice.

"Skye," his voice as sharp and cold as a blade's edge, "you know you can't hide from me forever." His footsteps stopped around the corner. Above, the murky grey sky was streaked with the first rays of dawn. A sliver of sunshine stretched across, melting like butter over mashed potatoes. Skye's stomach grumbled with that thought. She hadn't eaten since lunchtime yesterday. Cursing silently, Skye pushed herself off the wall and ran for her life. Immediately the pounding of his feet quickened.

"Maybe I can't do this," she panted to Simmons on the other line, "he's just too good and I won't be able to outrun him much longer."

"Know your enemies better then yourself." came the reply in Melinda May's voice. _If you wanted to help,_ Skye thought, _you could have dragged your kick-ass ninja butt down hear and helped_. As she twisted around corners, he could still be heard behind her in the still morning.

_Why is this happening to me?!_ She thought as her lungs gasped for air. _You're an Agent of SHIELD,_ another part of her brain argued, _this always happens to you. _She turned a corner and, _too late_, she realized, running smack into a dead end. Skye ran to one of the corners and pounded on the wall.

"We've got a sort of point on him Skye," Fitzs voice came through, "we're sending out a team right now."

"What do you mean 'sort of'! I'm trapped with him! Please tell me they're right around the corner..." Skye panicked, her eyes scanning for an escape route. "Tell me this was part of it. Is it?" Silence greeted her on the other end.

_So much they can do,_ Skye thought bitterly, tears threatening to spill over. She turned to face her predator. He stood blocking her doorway to freedom, his suit scraped up from their night run. In his right hand he held a gleaming semi-automatic pistol. His dark eyes studied her intently with a cold stair.

Skye sank down to the dusty ally floor as he took aim.

"Try to distract him! Do some of your talking magic! Something!" cried Simmons. Her panicked voice rose an octive.

Skye closed her eyes. "I'm so sorry." she whispered.

When she opened them, Ward's face was twisted in a cruel smile as she looked down the barrel of his gun.

A shot rang out and rippled through the quiet morning air.


	2. Chapter 2

Five days ago.

Skye walked around the plane, restless to be out and about, especialy since it seemed too quiet. Malinda May could fly as well as she could kick butt. Entering the rec room, she sat in one of the chairs near the window and sighed. The endless expance of white cotton candy clouds never ceased to wonder her. Ward's voice suddenly startled her.

"If you're so board, you should practice your left hook. It needs work." He didn't look up from his copy of To Kill A Mockingbird.

"Are you just implying that I suck? Because I think I got the message last time you said that." Skye pouted, sinking deeper into the white cushions. She was better with the computers anyway. Pushing herself out of the sorrowful chair, she plopped herself on the couch next to Ward, looking over his shoulder. Without looking, she felt his eyes staring at the back of her head.

"Is there anything in particular that you came over hear for?" his voice hinting some amused annoyance, "I'm sure there's something an agent of SHIELD could be doing? Maybe taking a stab at the punching bag?" Ward closed his book and she sat up to look him in the eye.

"And when I go to 'take a stab', I'll be thoughtful enough to put your face on it. You've got the right scowl that some people just want to punch." she smiled, carefully watching his reaction. His face didn't even crack. Sighing, she got up and turned to him.

"What is with your pockerface? I mean, I know your an agent and all, but your allowed to have fun! Tell me the last time you had fun." Skye staired him down.

"Having fun can be a distraction..." Ward started.

"Wow. Don't you have a brother or something?" she coaxed, "It couldn't have been that bad."

"No time for childhood memories, no matter how much therapy you're going to need in the future." Agent Coulson walked in, looking as usually unsharp in his unusually boring collection of suits. "We have a drug problem." he stated simply, glancing at Skye.

"Don't look at me!" she threw her hands up, "I'm clean. I swear."

"I'm sure you are," Coulson said, taking a deep breath, "but the people we've been called in to rescue won't be."

"Wait. I thought we only had to deal with the freaky alien stuff form space? Can't we just send in a few policeman to whip their butts and send them packing?" Skye asked.

"A nice thought, but we _are_ dealing with some freaky alien stuff from space." Everyone moved to the large computer screen as Coulson flicked up different images. Malinda calmly walked in, having put the plane on auto-pilot, and leaned back on the paneled glass. Tapping the screen table a few times, Coulson mirrored a medical ID card.

"This is Dr. Cassidy Fontana," he said as everyone leaned in to look, "she was involved with a few medical scams a couple years back. Eventually she learned to fly under the radar, but has recently been spotted in Denver, Colorado by one of our scouts." The girl couldn't have been much older than Skye. Piercing blue eyes gazed out blankly from the screen and waves of thick brown hair framed an angled face. Her thin lips were raised slightly in a smile. Everyone jumped as Fitz and Simmons entered.

"She may look like a smart, harmless, neural researcher," Fitz hurried on as Simmons glaired daggers at him, "but that girl's got the devil in her." Opening his laptop, documents poped up around her face. Police, FBI, and a few that Skye couldn't recognize. _I guess she isn't that harmless if she's got enough records for her own library_, she thought. "I rifled through a few of her files, and listen to this:" Fitz highlighted a few documents, "the multiple scandals say that she stole drugs and illigally gave them out, but only SHIELD's documents say that she was part of a secret research facility that did human testing for foreign, quote, 'alien', drugs. Last time, none of her subjects survived."

"Wait. Last time?! So this girl gets people high and potentially kills them for the fun of research?" Skye broke in.

"Percisely. However, her research has gone on to quite a bigger scale," Simmons said with an almost unnoticed admiration to her voice, "I read a few of her early research journals. Her study on the frontal, pariental, and temporal lobes of the brain was amazing! She..." With a hard glance from Coulson, Simmons quickly continued on track, "Well, her studies on the human brain have obviously reached the point of testing. But what she is testing? I can't even begin to identify it in the slightest."

"When she was followed, she ended up near an abandoned wherehouse. Cameras around the area have picked up some interesting...footage." Fitz cleared his throat, posting a video for everyone to see.

The pixilation was horrible, but cleared up enough to make out an alley way. All was quiet until three men entered the bottom left corner, moving quickly. Twoof the men were large and muscular, hauling the third between them. However, the third man was different. He struggled as the two beefy men jerked him forwards. A bag was tied around his head, blindfolding him. Staggering, he fell. One if the big men looked like he was cursing as they roughly kicked him until he was bloody, then hauled him back up. Just as soon as they had arrived, the alley way was empty. Fitz stopped the video. Everyone was silent.

"So...who was that man? Is he some special secret agent guy in need of saving from a maniacal, evil scientist, drug lord?" Skye ventured, breaking the ice and putting people in motion. "Actually, we've got no idea. There are a few other cameras around site that cought footage like this. All we know is that she's becoming desperate for willing lab rats and is kidnaping people off the streets, which is why we need to stop her." Coulson answered, "That's why we move in tonight."


	3. Chapter 3

A cool breeze twisted through the city of Denver, Colorado, the black sky twinkling with faded stars, gathered around a perfectly crescent moon like fireflies. Near the outskirts of the bright city, the breeze ran through a maze of storage containers and warehouses. A small group of people stood on the edge of a storage crate, overlooking a certain warehouse, and the breeze brushed past them and into the world beyond.

Skye shivered. She pulled her jacket closer to protect herself from the chill. Grant Ward and Melinda May stood on either side of her, arranging their gear, faces as hard and cold as stone. Fitz and Simmons had stayed on the plain, watching them with the cameras placed on the surrounding buildings. Coulson stood away from the group, talking on his phone. Skye fervently wished he was ordering pizza, as her stomach was growling way too loudly. Ward's 24/7 fitness training hadn't done anything to help her curb her appetite.

She and the rest of the group looked out across the shadows, watching them dance from the pale street lights with life of their own. The cold metal walls loomed at them and seemed to grow taller as Skye looked around. From the group's vantage point, they had a clear view of the large metal doors that protected the world from the horrors inside.

"Melinda," Coulson said, breaking the silence. "Can you scout the inside? I don't like to be unprepared, especially when trying to catch a mad scientist at midnight." Skye turned to watch Melinda, but she had already vanished as quietly as...well...Melinda May. A flicker of shadows near the large doors was the only visible sign that she was on the move.

"Skye, do you know what you're looking for?" Coulson's voice was as stiff as his gaze. Skye nodded.

"You want me to find their main frame for their computer and use my super hacking powers to get Fitz and Simmons into the network." She glanced at Coulson, as if seeking his approval. He gave a slight nod, his lip twitching in a small smile. After that exchange, though there was silence, the three of them standing there, waiting for Melinda.

"I used to go-kart." Ward said, after a pause, his skilled eyes roaming the darkness between lights.

"Go-karting. I like go-karting." Coulson's face lit up from the thoughtful scowl he had worn a moment before. "It's a great stress reliever, you know? Just driving around those pointless...tracks..." His voice faded away when he noticed Skye and Ward looking at him intently. He cleared his throat "Um...yes, go on." Coulson was clearly uncomfortable.

Skye turned toward Ward, all too happy to start up a conversation. "Why are you talking about go-karts? I have to admit that I agree with AC...Agent Coulson..." She corrected herself, glancing over at Coulson and seeing the annoyed expression flash across his face.

"Earlier. You asked me about the last time I had fun. Two boys, beating the crap out of each other, racing along at high speeds. Of course, my younger brother and I kicked butt together..." Ward's voice clouded, if only for a moment, before the invisible wall that guarded his emotion was put back up. His gaze sharpened and he looked away, distracting himself by fiddling with his bullet proof vest.

Skye smiled. "I guess you're not all robot." She whispered, loud enough for him to hear. She leaned over toward him and lightly punched his shoulder.

Coulson turned away from them at that moment, listening to his ear piece. "We've got a team on the ground to move on our orders." His face was deadly serious when he turned back. "Anything to report?" He asked, attention fixated on something between Skye and Ward.

Skye turned, and nearly had a heart attack when Melinda May appeared out of the darkness behind her. Her voice was steady and cool as she rattled off a full report.

_Eight fully armed bodyguards, ten security guards, and a warehouse full of scientists. Great_, thought Skye,_ it's a full house. Party time!_ She weaved between the shadows like Ward had shown her, following the team as they made their around to the squad SHIELD has given them as a sort of backup.

Agent Ward and Agent May were up front, their guns at the ready. Coulson took the back of the triangle, watching for any sign of trouble. Ward crept up to the corner of a crate and lifted his hand to stop. The group hurriedly pushed themselves against the side of the crate as two of the eight thugs rounded the corner. When they noticed the SHIELD team, their eyes widened in surprise.

Ward's fist instantly flashed forward, sharp and fast, felling the first thug. The other reached for the gun at his waist but was kicked down by May. Her hand shot out at his throat before he could make a single sound. However silent and methodical Melinda was, though, Ward was the opposite. After the first punch, the thug had gripped Ward's shirt and flung him up against the side of the crate. Ward's head struck the metal with an unpleasantly loud clang. Skye rushed to Ward's side as Coulson took over Ward's position and joined the fray.

With a heavy uppercut and a swift jab, Coulson had the man on his knees before knocking him out with the butt of his gun. Breathing heavily, Coulson looked around at his team, Skye helping Ward up, May standing over the knocked out thug, and the other one laying out cold on the concrete by Coulson's feet. They gathered together quietly, as not to sound any alarms.

Making their way around the building, Coulson waved in a squad of SHIELD agents, five sharp shooters. At the corner before the metal doors, Melinda stopped everyone while Ward made a few quick gestures. The team nodded, but Skye was completely blank on what was going on.

"Just make it to the metal doors without getting shot." Coulson's voice whispered in her earpiece. She looked across the circle and gave Coulson a thumbs up, signaling that she had understood his message.

Slowly turning the corner, the team fanned out, Skye in the middle. An uneasy calm took over for the briefest of moments before the sky was rent with the sound of gunfire.

"Move! Move! Move!" Ward's voice shouted above the noise. Now running, the team closed in on each other. Skye's heart raced as she ducked, heading for the metal doors. Ward held the door with his foot, shooting up at the level of uneven crates where the shots seemed to be coming from. Skye and the rest of the team made it through the door, Melinda dragging Ward inside. One of the SHIELD team took a heavy chain from the ground and quickly wrapped it around the handles as the door shook with the barrage of bullets.

Taking a breath, the team turned and gasped collectively. Rows and rows of hospital beds covered the first floor, all of them full. Dull lights flickered overhead, the shadows threatening to overwhelm the room. Coulson walked up to one of the occupied beds, feeling the person's neck. Looking back, he silently shook his head. The person in the bed was dead, and Skye was prepared to bet that all the other people in the beds were dead, too.

Skye slowly looked around as the team made their way through the maze of bodies. A weak cough suddenly broke the silence. The team quickly jumped into action, guns at the ready, surrounding the dark corner where the noise had come from. Taking a flashlight from his belt, Ward shone the bright beam into the shadows.

Now exposed to bright light, the women backed away. She wore a dirty and tasseled hospital gown. Her feet were bare, scraped and bloody. Thin blonde hair fell lightly around her narrow face. Dark circles under her pale blue eyes matched the bruises that covered her arms. Leaning against the wall, she cringed away from the group like a rat hiding from sunlight.

"Guns down." Coulson ordered in a soft whisper that nevertheless echoed off the walls like a shout. The woman shrank away even more at the sound of his voice. Skye slowly edged forward, followed by the rest of her team.

From the unseen shadows, a canister rolled into the center of the group.

"Run!" Coulson's voice shouted a split second before a white vapor covered everyone in a thick fog. Skye choked, her eyes watering as she fell to her knees. She felt something sweep her up and though the black spots in her vision, she was dimly aware of Ward's grim but determined face as he ran with her in his arms.

She never remembered when he put her down, but as darkness overwhelmed her, she felt the floor under her body and Agent Ward on the floor next to her. _Please don't let this be the end_, was her last thought as she saw his eyelids flutter shut. Her own thoughts became muddled as she scrambled with her consciousness, trapped in a dark cage of her own mind.


	4. Chapter 4

When Skye woke, she sat sat up slowly, groaning and rubbing her head. The entire warehouse had been wiped clean of any signs that suggested a morgue had been there previously. Coulson was still there, running around giving orders, and the SHIELD logo had been put on pretty much every item Skye could see. She looked around, squinting, and saw that the rest of the team sans Agent May was slowly waking.

Melinda May was standing quietly off to the side, her eyes roaming around at a faster pace than her calm composure seemed to let on. Ward leaned forward, rubbing the back of his head and groaning quietly. Nearby, Skye saw that two of the sharpshooters were still out. Nurses and scientists alike mingled around as the crime scene was swept clean.

"Good to see you awake and alive" Coulson's voice broke through Skye's daze as he moved towards them. "We've done a bit of research and found that the scientist, Dr. Fontana, has been working with Rising Tide. She and her team made it out before our backup arrived. Our own scientists are studying the bodies right now."

"What a coincidence." Skye mumbled, thinking about the Rising Tide. Her words came out more as "warpa coincenime." Confused, she paused, struggling to form full words.

"Relax." Coulson stood by her side, his hands in his pockets. His lips were raised in an annoyingly smug smile. "It will take you a while to fully regain your voice. The gas we were exposed to was a diluted form of a foreign drug that was being tested-" he paused, raising an eyebrow at Skye's mouth, which hung open like a trapdoor. "It was only a small shockwave set to disable our motor neurons for, well, quite some time. I think we experienced it before in, what, Morocco?" He turned to Melinda May for confirmation, but she just lifted an eyebrow at him.

Skye nodded to show that she understood. She didn't say anything, though, because her tongue felt like it had been turned into lead and speaking through that was complicated and frustrating. She looked around again, feeling useless.

With a slight whirring noise, a small droid appeared in her vision. It was one of Fitz's little robots, so Skye ignored it, but it flew nearer and shot a beam of light into her eye. Her mouth opened in a gasp as she slapped her hand over her eye, the light imprinted on her brain.

"Sorry! It's just protocol, so we can confirm your recovery!" Fitz was across the room, holding his control-pad and standing next to Simmons, who was inspecting a pad of her own with a thoughtful frown.

"Hey, Fitz. I've got a scan of some substance. I think it's Lauren." Simmons pointed at a small droid hovering over a nondescript patch of concrete.

"Yessim doin fine," Skye called back to them. She blinked a few times, letting her eyes adjust to the now fully functional lights of the warehouse. There were still some black specks in her vision. "Les jus get back to the bus. Being knocked out for a full day isn't helping my temperament." She smiled when she said this. At least she could be understood again.

The next morning, Skye bounced down the hallway and briskly walked into the lab.

"What's got you in a good mood?" Simmons asked, a smile playing on her's and Fitz's lips.

"Nothing, really. Just the fact that I'm not dead, and that a night of sleeping in a bed can do wonders. Just thought I would come down and say hi to our secluded scientists." She pulled herself on one of the tables, swinging her legs.

"You might not want to..." Simmons looked pointedly at a metal box sitting next to Skye, which was giving her a wonderful view of a human arm. Immediately, Skye jumped off and moved to a spot closer to the door.

"While I admit that's disgusting, I don't think a human arm will kill my mood." Skye crossed her arms defiantly and stared hard at Fitzsimmons. She wouldn't have broken her gaze, but the door hissed open and Agent Ward walked in.

"Do you have the physicals set up? Since it's protocol and all." He leaned on the table, right next to the exposed arm, without flinching or even giving the arm a second glance.

"I think my mood's been strangled, actually." Skye lightly leaped off the table, exiting the room. Ward looked after her, eyebrow raised in confusion. He shrugged it off, then turned back to the arm on the table.

"What's this here for again?"

The afternoon of physicals had been one of the most taxing things Skye had ever done, and to rub salt on her wound, everyone on her team had passed with flying colours. She had just done adequately, but hers had taken so long that the windows were already dimming with the oncoming night. She sighed, and opened her door.

Ward was sitting on her bed, his boots making tracks in the carpet. On his lap, her laptop was open, and his fingers slid across the keys as if he was used to using her keyboard.

"Ward! What are you doing in here?" Skye demanded hotly.

Ward looked up, eyes wide and startled, "I'm, um, looking up some places to go-kart. I mean, since my brother and I-"

"That's not what I meant, Ward! Why are you in my room?" Skye eyed him warily. Ward never acted surprised. He quickly tapped a few keys before closing the computer and meeting her stare with his own level gaze.

"Coulson is having me go through your computer, Skye. To determine your loyalty to SHIELD."

Skye's anger began bubbling. She leaned forward slightly, a few strands of hair falling into her face and her eyes dead on and serious. "My loyalties, Ward? I have shown that my loyalties lie with SHIELD. Why are you lying to my face, Ward? Coulson would never-"

"Then I guess you have nothing to worry about." Ward shoved past her into the hallway, his face guarded, impatient.

"Wait!" Skye reached out for Ward's shoulder, trying to stop him, or at least slow him down. What has gotten into you?"

There was a pause, ripe with tension, and Skye immediately regretted her actions. Suddenly she was slammed against the wall, her breath knocked out of her. Ward's hands hit the wall behind her, on either side of her head. His face loomed in close to hers, their noses barely touching.

"Gotten into me?" His voice shook. "I'm just following orders, like a good soldier. Maybe you should do the same."

He stormed off, rubbing the back of his neck, not even blinking when he bumped past Simmons. Her ponytail bobbed as she looked back. Simmons walked to Skye's side, and the two girls watched Ward's angry form stomp down the staircase.

"Is he alright?" Simmons looked at Skye with a concerned look on her face.

"Don't look at me," Skye said softly. "I haven't got a clue."

" I'm sure he's...um, just burning off some steam. The gas can hit you pretty hard." From her tone, Simmons wasn't convinced.

"Well, he was on my laptop," Skye opened it, tapping a few keys, "which makes me wonder why he was on my…" She paused, eyes wide, staring incredulously at her screen "Email. Wait. All my messages are encrypted! How could he..."she trailed off, a sudden, awful idea in her mind.

"What? What did he do?" Simmons leaned over her shoulder to get a better look.

"Did everyone seem normal after the gas?" Skye asked urgently.

"Um...nothing unusual, if that's what you're asking. Everyone's vital signs were perfectly normal." Simmons gave Skye an even more baffled look.

"My email is encrypted, with passcodes only the Rising Tide would know." Skye told her. She knew Simmons would figure out the implications.

"So Ward is working with the enemy?" Simmons finished her thought in a panicked voice.

Skye shrugged, then closed the laptop with a sigh. "Maybe not. Maybe it's something to do with the gas. Either way, we've got to warn Coulson."


	5. Chapter 5

The next morning, Skye, Simmons, Fitz, and Malinda met in the display room. Up on the big screen, a lone figure sat cuffed to a table. Ward's face was bruised from where Coulson had knocked him out the night before.

"Oh, turn it up!" Fitz gestured to Skye. Sighing, she tapped a few buttons and the click of the door was herd as Coulson entered the interigation room. Ward slunk down in the metal chair. Coulson stood in front of him, his arms crossed.

"Do you care to tell me why?" Coulson's voice was sharp, cutting the silence like a shard of glass. He glared down on his fellow agent, his eyes now filled with curiosity and sadness. Ward only looked up to challenge his gaze. From where the camera was placed, the team couldn't see Ward's eyes clearly, but his jaw tightened.

"It wasn't supposed to go like this."

"And how should 'it' have gone, may I ask?"

"Not like this." Ward muttered.

"Why don't you start explaining?" Coulson leaned down to eye level, placing his hands on the cold metal table that separated them. "After everything that SHIELD gave you-"

"Like what?" ward's tone was smooth, "tell me again. Tell me how SHIELD trained me as a soldier all those years ago. Tell me to keep secrets from everyone I know. Tell me-"

"Enough!" Coulson slammed his hands on the table, making it shake. "I believe your family history is one that we both know should not be taken lightly." Ward sat back and pursed his lips in a grimm expression of dislike.

"You're right. I'm sorry, but don't some people deserve the truth?"

"Spoken like a true Rising Tide. What makes you so sure that everyone can handle the truth? I'm sure you have learned from your experiences."

"Well. From what people are saying-"

"Who are you? Why are you trying to infiltrate SHIELD?" Coulson cut him off sharply. "I've had my eye on you and now two of my agents-"

Suddenly, Ward's back straitened and his eyes narrowed.

"Sir. I don't have a lot of time, there must be a broken connection. Their planing something. Rising Tide. Bigger than-" he stopped short.

"Than what?" Coulson's face was desperate as he came around the table, leaning down towards Ward.

Just as sudden as the change of personalities, Ward turned and grabbed Coulson shirt, pulling him down. The chains on the cuffs rattled as they were pulled to their limit by Ward's movements. Speaking in Coulsons' ear loud enough for everyone else to hear, Ward's voice broke over the live feed:

"Gone for two seconds and he almost spills the finale. That would have been a death sentance for us both. We wouldn't want that now, would we?" He shoved Coulson back. Skye slowly let out a sigh. The tension in the room lifted like a vale.

Smoothing his tie, Coulson cleared his throat. "What do you mean?" His voice wavered just loud enough that Ward, or whoever he was, looked up smiling.

"You really think I willingly did this for kicks? I am just as uncomfortable as you, but FYI, SHIELD isn't the only organization with higher powers. We've all got our part to play. It may not be to our liking and comfort, but it's for the grater good."

"And what of the people who can't handle the truth? How are we going to deal with such an uprising?"

"At least the people won't have to live in fear of whatever suspicions they might already have! They know that aliens exist! What other supernatural creatures do you guys hide in plain sight?" Ward played with the chains of the cuffs as he spoke, Coulson silently watching him. After a moment, he paused. "You should be more careful next time. Leaving paper clips in your pocket? Careless."

Before anyone could react, the cuffs flew off Ward's wrists. Grabbing the metal chair, he swung it around bashing Coulson's head against the wall with a sickening crunch. Skye felt the world suddenly move in slow motion.

Coulson's body hit the ground as Ward opened the door. May was already running down the length of hallway to the room. Skye 's body was suddenly pushed into motion as she followed May. Reaching the door, Malinda was shoved into the hallway by the metal table, pinning her against the wall. Skye slowed down in open mouthed horror as Ward rushed out of the room, brandishing the metal chair. With it, he struck Malinda, knocking her unconscious.

Time seemed to catch up as Skye fell back and scrambled up against the glass wall of the computer room where Simmons and Fits were hastily trying to contact HQ. Ward ran past her and Skye watched him through the blur of her tears. She pushed herself up and forced herself to follow him.

By the time Skye made it to the bottom of the stairs, Ward was putting on a parachute and pushing the button that opened the hatch. Alarms blazed, but the sound faded as Skye watched. Mist whirled in as the plane was flying through the clouds. Clutching the bannister on the stairs, Skye stood, trembling.

"Ward!" she cried, "You can fight him! Help us!" Standing before the open hatch, Ward paused. For a split second he looked back, eyes full of hurt and rage, the eyes of the real Ward. Turning fully towards Skye, his eyes sharpened into that of a stranger's.

"Well, Skye," he yelled over the defanging wind, "sorry I couldn't stay longer! Your dealing with a Rising Tide that's crashing way over your head. Welcome to the big leagues!" He smiled. And fell. Screaming, Skye ran to the edge without falling and watched Ward as he disappeared into the white smoke.


	6. Chapter 6

Gathered around the computer table, the team was silent. Last nights events had shaken everyone. Skye looked around the table. Melinda leaned near the door, her face a perfect mask, hiding her emotions. Fitz toyed with some mechanical toy and Simmons stared at her hands. Coulson stood with his arms crossed, staring down the computer as if it could bring back Ward.

On the monoter, a red dot pulsed somewhere in Arizona. Coulson had injected everyone with tracking devices to locate the team if anything were to happen. A cluster of red dots where the rest of the team was gathered moved slowly across Oklahoma.

"Well..." Coulson attempted to start up a conversation. However, no one was there to listen.

* * *

Sitting inside the SHIELD jeep, Skye looked through the tinted windows where the missing parachute had been. Looking down at her feet, she replayed yesterday over in her mind. There was obviously something in Ward's...no..._his_ words. Haden't he said _death sentance_?

Skye's train of thought was broken as the opposite door opened. Coulson sighed and hoisted himself up, sitting heavily in the black leather. For a few minutes they sat in silence.

"Ward's history is...complicated. Whoever has taken control of him apperantly has access to his memories. Whatever 'Ward' revieles about himself is probably something you don't want to bring up later with the real Ward. He-"

"Stop."

"What?"

"Why tell me this now? It's like you know that he's going to be fine. Someone _hijacked _one of your agents and you act as if it's all ok. Is everyone here just running from their past?" Skye stared into space, not daring to look at Coulson.

"That's the point. No one _can_ run from their past. Too many guys and aliens kept escaping, only to take us on again. We were loosing too many level one guys who had no idea how to handle situations. I believed SHIELD would work more efficently with a small team of experts from level seven. Guess what? I was right. We are given some of the toughest cases and every time you guys never stop amazing me. SHIELD agents face death more then...I don't know...some high number of deaths than _any_ normal person. After years of this, you learn to live on the optomistic side of life." Coulson stopped, taking a deep breath, "Don't tell anyone that I appreciate them that much."

Skye chuckled. "I'm sure if I told anyone, you'd have to kill me." Coulson gave her an amused glance.

From her view through the windshield, Skye saw Fitz eagerly wave his hands in the air like a mad man before dashing up the stairs, two at a time.

"I think the brainiacs have found something!" She quickly climbed out of the car with Coulson close on her heels.

* * *

By the time they reached the computer room, Fitz was already halfway through an explanation as May turned to Coulson, raising an eyebrow.

"Look who decided to show up." As always, her voice gave no emotion.

"Stop!" At the sound of Coulson's voice, Fitz stopped, panting and out of breath. "How about we start this over?" Fitz nodded and leaned on the table.

"Well, what my ever so clever colegue was trying to say, was that we may have been able to find out how Rising Tide is controlling Ward." Simmons entered behind them, safety goggles still on from the lab. Walking over to the table, she tapped a few things. "Here." Simmons brought up a picture that must have been a scan of Ward's head. The outline of his skull and brain were tinted a light blue. Double tapping, she enlarged the bottom half of the brain.

"Remember when we took these during the phisicals?" Every one nodded, "Well, it was practacly invisable and near impossable to see, but we found what seems to be a highly advanced transcranial pulsed ultrasound-"

"Which would in turn allow whoever was on the other end to controle Ward." Fitz finnished the sentence, still breathing hard.

"A transa-what?" Skye gave them a confused look, as did Coulson.

"It's esentially a tiny, tiny robot that's controling your body. Underneth the temporal lobe," Simmons pointed to the lowest spot on the brain, right where the brainstem went into the brain, "right beside the hippocampus, you see that?"

Now enlarged, Skye could just baraly make out a faint grayish-black smuge, no bigger than the tip of a pen. "Wait...is he, like, in the Matrix?" When Simmons gave her a confused look, Skye sighed. "Never mind. Hippo...what? I'm not a genius in brain parts you know."

"Right," it was Simmons turne to let out a quick sigh, "The hippocampus is the part of the brain that stores memories, long and short term. We believe this is why Ward, or whoever he is, can access memories and steal the real Ward's identity."

Out of the corner of her eye, Skye noticed that May had started a staring competition with the floor. Weird. Just as she was turning to ask May, the main screen on the wall flickered and went out. At the same time, the plane's power shut off, leaving the team free falling for a second before the lights flickered back on.

Paniced, everyone started shouting and running around. Fitz was quickly following Simmons down to the lab to make sure everything was in order. May rushed out of the room to the captin's cabin to secure their flight path. Skye immediately turned her attention to the computer table, trying to see what had happened. Coulson stood at her side.

Skye looked down and suddenly realized what was happening. "Um...Coulson? We're being hacked."

As if on cue, the screen flickered to life, lighting up an image of Ward's face. Skye and Coulson just stared.

"I knew I got the right plane!" Ward's face lit up with a smile as his arm reached out to adjust the camera. His hair was tousled to a dark mess on his head. "Hello, Agent. Skye. Doesn't look like everyone is here yet. I can wa-"

"What do you want?" Coulson interrupted.

"Well, let me see..." Ward put on a thoughtful face, looking to one side of the screen, "We've already hacked into a lot of un-marked missions I'm sure the public would love to hear about." Facing back to the camera, Ward looked straight at Coulson. "I'm the first and only test subject. You really think their going to waste me on some big mission?"

"What are you doing here then? You're simply running our agent by a computer sending commands strait to his brain. You call yourselves humane! Is any of this humane?"

"Why do you think we picked one of the fittest? You're not in any position to negotiate your agent just yet. I'm here," Ward turned his head just slightly, "For her. You've been naughty and upstairs doesn't like it when you're working for the enemy."

Coulson turned, shocked. Skye covered her mouth and rushed out of the room.

As she ran, she heard Ward's voice echo down the hallway. "Since you know I'm in Arizona, I'll be waiting for her at midnight."


End file.
